Sports Then and Now

As September continues to move toward October, this NFL season is providing us with some truths that stand the test of time and some that have and will continue to shock us all. And then, there are the teams or players who break the norm – finally. Week 3 saw the end of an almost-century-long losing streak, the worst loss ever for one head coach, a potential Cinderella story getting to 3-0, a first for the 49ers since 1958, and the Jaguars, well, being the Jaguars. Here are your Week 3 NFL headlines.

Alex Smith in Kansas City is working out all right so far as KC is 3-0.

The Eagles lost their eighth straight game at home and the Chiefs, led by former Eagles coach, Andy Reid, improved to 3-0 with a 26-16 win to open the week on Thursday night. It is just the second time Philly has ever lost eight in a row at home and first time since 1936-37. Lesean McCoy managed his third-highest rushing total in the loss, but only second-highest of the season with 158 yards and Michael Vick posted a career-high 61-yard run. The Chiefs joined the 2002 Panthers as the last team to start a season 3-0 after winning two or fewer games the year before. Alex Smith became the first Kansas City signal caller to win his first three starts with the team since Joe Montana in 1993.

Calvin Johnson tied Torry Holt as the fourth-fastest player to accumulate 8,000 career receiving yards as he did so in his 95^th career game and Detroit beat the Redskins, 27-20. The win was the first ever for the Lions in the city of Washington (1-21) as they had not beaten the Redskins on the road since they were in Boston in 1935. The Skins fell to 0-3, but Robert Griffin III’s 975 yards through three games are the second-most all-time by a quarterback who started out 0-3. Matthew Stafford became just the second quarterback since 2001 to throw for 200-plus yards in the first half of each of his first three games of a season.

The Browns, without Brandon Weeden and with Brian Hoyer, put up 24 points in the first half – more than they scored in their first two games combined (16). Hoyer, the Browns’ 19^th different starting quarterback since 1999, finished the day 30-of-54 for 321 yards and became the first QB in Browns history to pass for 300 yards in his team debut. Cleveland punter, Spencer Lanning, became the first player since 1968 to record a punt, an extra point and a touchdown pass in a game, according to the NFL. Cleveland almost doubled its points total from the first two weeks (16) with their 31 on Sunday and they were the most in a game for them since Week 6 of last year (34). Adrian Peterson scored a rushing touchdown in his sixth straight home game, extending the longest active streak in the NFL, while Christian Ponder, however, bested his All-Pro teammate with two rushing scores and became the first quarterback this season with a pair of them in a game.

Eli Manning was sacked six times in the first half and the Giants went into the break trailing the Panthers, 10-0, as both teams looked for their first win of the year. Carolina would be the team to get it as they handed a reeling Giants team its worse loss in the Tom Coughlin era, 38-0. The Panthers recorded 27 first downs in the game to just 10 for New York. It was their third-worst shutout loss in team history and worst since a 42-0 defeat in 1973. This is their first 0-3 start since 1996 and in so doing, they became the first team since 2001 with 13 turnovers through three games. The G-Men also became just the third team in the last 50 years to allow 35 or more points in each of their first three games of a season.

Eli Manning was sacked seven times as the Giants fell to 0-3.

The Bengals got out to a very early 14-0 lead on the Packers, but after four consecutive turnovers, trailed 16-14 at the half before coming back to win, 34-30, with the help of four Green Bay turnovers. They were aided by two Aaron Rodgers interceptions – his first game with multiple picks thrown since Week 7 in 2010. He had thrown at least three TD passes in five straight games coming in before just one on Sunday. A sixth would have set a Green Bay record.

Jake Locker threw a last-second 34-yard touchdown pass that gave the Titans’ franchise its first win over the Chargers since 1992 when they were still the Oilers. San Diego had beaten them nine straight times. Philip Rivers had previously been 6-0 against Tennessee, which has yet to turn the ball over this season. The Titans outgained the Chargers, 452-277, despite 11 penalties for 116 yards.

Tom Brady recorded a touchdown pass in his 51^st consecutive game as he connected with rookie, Kenbrell Thompkins, twice in the first half alone and the Patriots topped the Bucs, 23-3. He is now three shy of tying Drew Brees’ all-time record of 54 straight. For Thompkins, they were his first NFL touchdown grabs and with them, he became the first Patriots’ rookie wideout with two TD receptions in a game since 1983. The Pats are 3-0 for the first time since 2007 (16-0) and picked up their first win of the year by more than three points, while the Bucs fell to 0-3 for the 12^th time in their history.

Brees threw for 300 yards in his eighth straight game dating back to last season in a big 31-7 win over the Cardinals to help the Saints improve to 3-0. New Orleans has held all three of its opponents to 17 points or less this season after their league-worst defense contained opponents to 17 or less just three times last year. Cards’ safety, Rashad Johnson, lost the tip of his middle finger in the game (photo).

The Cowboys won their ninth straight Week 3 game with a convincing 31-7 win of their own over the Rams. DeMarco Murray had 175 yards on 26 carries, his highest single-game total since Week 7 of 2011 and second-highest total of his career, as the Cowboys got out to a 24-0 lead. Dallas is 2-0 at home for the first time since their new stadium opened in 2009.  St. Louis converted just one third down on 13 chances.

For the first time since 2002, the Dolphins are 3-0 as they beat the struggling Falcons, 27-23. They have also put up at least 20 points in each of their first three games for the first time since 2002. Tony Gonzalez had four receptions and with them, he became just the second player in league history with 1,250 career catches, joining Jerry Rice.

Russell Wilson tied a Seahawks record and career-high with four touchdown passes as he led Seattle to a dominating 45-17 win over the lowly Jaguars. The Seahawks have now allowed 17 or fewer points in eight consecutive games. Jacksonville’s 17 points were more than they put up in their first two games combined, however (11). Seattle’s plus-59 point differential through three weeks leads the league, just ahead of the Broncos at plus-56.

Even Tarvaris Jackson threw a touchdown pass against the Jags.

The Colts beat up on the 49ers, 27-7, and San Francisco fell to 1-2, giving them a losing record for the first time under Jim Harbaugh. Shockingly, this was the first time sine 1958 that the 49ers have lost consecutive games by at least 20 points while scoring seven or fewer in each game.

The Jets improved to 2-1 behind 331 yards and two touchdown passes from Geno Smith, beating the Bills, 27-20. Smith became the first New York rookie quarterback to throw for 300 and two scores in a game. Somehow, the Jets became the first team since 1951 to win a game in which they committed 20 penalties. They were guilty of 20 for 168 yards.

The Bears improved to 3-0 with their first win in Pittsburgh since 1989 thanks to five turnovers from the Steelers on Sunday night. Chicago jumped out to a 17-0 lead in the first quarter, handing Pittsburgh a 17-point deficit  in the first quarter at home for the first time since 1989 as well. The Bears returned another pick for a touchdown – their tenth since the beginning of last year, double as much as the next-closest team. Pittsburgh is 0-3 for the first time since 2000 and have just 155 rushing yards through three games. The only Bears’ coach to begin his tenure with the team with a better record than Marc Trestman is George Halas, who started 5-0 in 1920.

With three more touchdown passes on Monday night, Peyton Manning set a record for the most touchdowns thrown in the first three games of a season with 12 as the Broncos improved to 3-0, beating the Raiders, 37-21. Manning’s 86.5-percent completion rate (32-of-37) was the highest of his career. The team’s 127 points scored through three games are tied for the second-most in NFL history. This was Denver’s 14^th straight regular-season win, tying a franchise record. And their 37 points? A season-low.

This is the first time in the history of the league that the Redskins and Giants are both 0-3 in the same season, according to Elias. Joining them in the winless category after three weeks are the Vikings, Bucs, Steelers and Jags. Also, seven unbeatens remain: the Bears, Saints, Seahawks, Patriots, Dolphins, Broncos and Chiefs.

Some information taken from ESPN Stats & Info.

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